Antimicrobial Stewardship Knowledge Gaps among Healthcare Professionals at a Ghanaian Tertiary Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Study

Key Takeaways for GI Nurses

• Knowledge gaps in antimicrobial stewardship exist among healthcare professionals in hospital settings, highlighting the need for targeted education and training programs that include nursing staff in GI and endoscopy units
• Nurses play a critical coordinated role alongside prescribers and pharmacists in antimicrobial stewardship efforts, making their education and engagement essential for reducing antimicrobial resistance
• Inappropriate antimicrobial use contributes to antimicrobial resistance, emphasizing the importance of proper prophylaxis protocols and infection prevention practices in endoscopy procedures
• International healthcare settings may face similar challenges in antimicrobial stewardship implementation, suggesting universal applicability of stewardship principles across different healthcare systems

Clinical Relevance

This study underscores the critical importance of antimicrobial stewardship knowledge for GI and endoscopy nurses, who frequently encounter situations requiring antimicrobial decision-making. In endoscopy units, nurses are instrumental in implementing prophylactic antibiotic protocols for high-risk procedures, managing patients with infectious complications, and ensuring appropriate post-procedural antimicrobial administration. The identified knowledge gaps highlight opportunities for targeted education that could significantly impact patient outcomes and reduce the development of resistant organisms in our patient populations.

The coordinated approach emphasized in this research directly applies to GI nursing practice, where nurses serve as key communicators between physicians, pharmacists, and patients regarding antimicrobial therapy. Endoscopy nurses are often responsible for patient education about pre-procedural antibiotic prophylaxis, monitoring for adverse reactions, and recognizing signs of infection that may require antimicrobial intervention. Enhanced stewardship knowledge enables nurses to participate more effectively in multidisciplinary rounds, question inappropriate antimicrobial orders, and advocate for optimal patient care while minimizing resistance development.

From a unit operations perspective, implementing robust antimicrobial stewardship practices in GI and endoscopy settings requires nursing leadership and engagement. This includes developing standardized protocols for prophylactic antibiotic administration, creating educational resources for staff and patients, and establishing monitoring systems for antimicrobial-related outcomes. The study's findings suggest that investing in comprehensive stewardship education for nursing staff could yield significant benefits in terms of improved patient safety, reduced healthcare-associated infections, and decreased antimicrobial resistance rates within gastroenterology services.

Bottom Line

Antimicrobial stewardship knowledge gaps among healthcare professionals, including nurses, represent a significant opportunity for improvement in GI and endoscopy practice. Given nurses' integral role in the coordinated stewardship effort alongside prescribers and pharmacists, targeted education and training programs are essential to optimize antimicrobial use, reduce resistance development, and improve patient outcomes in gastroenterology and endoscopy settings.